


Of goats and crabs

by basilthymee



Category: STE - Fandom
Genre: Dating, Dont sue me chunsoft, F/M, High School, Kissing, Rangandonpa, this is wild
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-19
Updated: 2020-12-19
Packaged: 2021-03-10 03:35:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,431
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27897664
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/basilthymee/pseuds/basilthymee
Summary: Blossoming love under the branches of an oak tree.
Relationships: Karter Stevens (STE) / Zoey Berry (STE)
Comments: 5
Kudos: 6





	Of goats and crabs

Zoey’s eyes darted open, she was blown back for a moment, the soft filtered light streaking through her half closed blinders invaded her eyes.  
With a groan, she slowly sat up and ran her hand through her long hair. She had too much on her mind to think clearly, summer break had ended, and that could only mean one thing.  
She went through her morning routine on autopilot, replying with an unenthusiastic grunt whenever any of her family members tried to interact with her.  
With her bowl of Lucky Loops™ she sat down at the counter and pulled her phone out.  
  


\-- [OI] overzealousImpulse began pestering [BS] burningShenanigains at 8:23 --  
  
BS: hey  
OI: Oh hi!  
BS: i didn't expect you to be up this early  
OI: Me neither...  
BS: yeah... this sucks  
OI: it totally does!!  
OI: summer went by so quickly  
BS: it did  
BS: oh well  
BS: ah shit i gotta go  
OI: alright! see ya ash!  
  
\-- [OI] overzealousImpulse ceased pestering [BS] burningShenanigains at 8:41 --  


  
She retreated to her room and got dressed, what to wear today? A bland white t-shirt with an equally bland and flat alien design on the front? Or maybe the dark green overalls she had brought at a street market with her good friend Ian.  
The latter was her choice, she thought it would be cool to “reinvent herself” for the new school year, her goth girl aesthetic only had so much child-like wonder left in it, it was time for something refreshing.  
Her eyes wandered over to the digital clock next to her bed. She wouldn’t be late for her first day, right?  
It read 8:58.  


ZOEY: OH  
ZOEY: FUCK!  


  
She better hurry.  
Zoey burst into class a gasping, sweating mess. Although summer was technically over, the sun overhead still beamed down relentlessly.  


***

She excused herself for her lateness and sat down at her desk, letting out a long, exasperated sigh, this wasn’t a good look for the first day of school, hopefully the rest of the day will turn out better.  


IAN: Hey Zoey!  
ZOEY: Oh, hey!  
IAN: Are those...  
ZOEY: Yeah! They are!  
IAN: Oh my god! I never thought you'd wear them!  
ZOEY: Yeah! I thought I would reinvent myself hehe!  
IAN: Goth Zoey is dead...  
ZOEY: Yeah... The world has progressed past the need for Goth Zoey!  
IAN: So what Zoey are you now?  
ZOEY: Uhm, I have no idea what this aesthetic is called.  
IAN: Cottage-core?  
ZOEY: Hmm... I'll call it...  
ZOEY: Zoey-core!  
IAN: Nice!  


The teacher snapped at the two friends just as they were finishing their conversation, Zoey quickly shut up and pulled her notebook out of her bag.  
She opened the first page to find a drawing of hers, specifically, a drawing of one of her favourite characters, Persaz Helium, from a web comic she had begun reading. She turned the page, another drawing.  
Zoey liked to draw in her schoolbooks, although she didn’t remember these two precise drawings, but she figured out she must’ve forgotten when she drew them, after all, she barely listens to lessons. She turned another page, another drawing. this was getting weird.  
Another page, another drawing.  
It was only once she arrived at about halfway through her notebook that she realised something. This was her sketchbook.  
  


IAN: Oh no...  
ZOEY: Oh...  
IAN: Isn't that like-  
ZOEY: Yeah, it is.  
ZOEY: This! Isn't good!  
IAN: Hey I can g-  


  
The teacher reprimanded the two again, this time shutting them up for good until the end of the lesson.  
Zoey wistfully walked out of the classroom and went over to her locker. She didn’t have the time to put her bag in when she first arrived, so she did it now.  
But as she approached her locker, a strong, overwhelming smell of deodorant and synthetic plastic made her head spin slightly.  
  


ZOEY: Eugh.  
ZOEY: Is it who I think It is?  
IAN: Yeah, it's them.  
ZOEY: There's something I DIDN'T miss...  
ZOEY: ...the jocks.  


  
The single thing that Zoey hated the most about school wasn’t the homework, or the teachers, or the occasional troublemakers which always made everything a bit more annoying, no, it was the almost alien-like group of students called the jocks, although Zoey liked to call them “annoying dumbasses who were loud and made a mess everywhere they went plus they all smelt horribly and were all dumb and stupid and idiots”.  
She held her breath and opened her locker, frantically stuffing her bag inside and tucking her sketchbook and pencil case under her arm just so she didn’t have to spend another moment near those athletes.  
Just as she shut her locker, she couldnt help but overhear them.  
  


JOCK: Yoo that last play was so tight man!  
JOCK: Yeah, totally! You rocked it!  
KARTER: True, true.  
JOCK: Both of y'all free after school?  
JOCK: Hell yeah!  
KARTER: Yeah man.  


  
Karter distanced himself from the rest of the pack and went over to his locker, fumbling with the combination lock for a moment before unlocking it. He had positioned himself in an awkward way, almost as if he were hiding something.  
Zoey though, managed to get a peek at the interior. A bunch of drawings were hung up but she couldn’t make any of them out. Did he have someone draw them for him? Did he draw them? Why would a person like him even hang up drawings in his locker?  
She expected him to have anything but drawings.  
And as much as she wanted to forget what she saw and use her brainpower to focus on her next class, she couldn’t stop thinking about it.  
She slumped down on her desk and hid her face with her sketchbook, trying her best to drown out the monotone voice of her math teacher.

IAN: What's wrong Zo?  
ZOEY: Hm?  
IAN: You look tired...  
ZOEY: Oh no! I'm fine!  
IAN: Did you get sleep?  
ZOEY: Yeah! Totally!  
IAN: Alright...  
ZOEY: Y-yeah!  
IAN: ...  
ZOEY: ...  
IAN: ...  
IAN: Something is up. Definetly.  
ZOEY: What!? No!  
IAN: You're a terrible liar!  
ZOEY: Okay, fine.  
ZOEY: Earlier I peeked into Karter's locker.  
IAN: Okay so one: Karter the jock? And two: why the hell did you look in his locker?!  
ZOEY: Yea-  


Zoey shut herself up as the teacher passed through the desks, turning to a blank page of her sketchbook and drawing some random math-related scribbles to try and appear as if she were listening.  
The teacher stopped for a moment and peered over Zoey’s shoulder, she tensed up, an eerie silence fell on the classroom, the ticking of the clock echoing in her ears.  
She could hear her heartbeat thumping in her head, a bead of sweat trickled down her forehead.

IAN: ...  
ZOEY: ...  
IAN: ...  
ZOEY: ...  


The teacher shrugged and left, going to the back of the classroom where a raised hand waited for them.

IAN: Oh my god...  
ZOEY: That was close.  
IAN: Yeah...   
IAN: Sooo, what did you see?  
ZOEY: ?  
IAN: In his locker!  
ZOEY: I saw... drawings!  
IAN: Drawings.  
ZOEY: Drawings.  
IAN: Drawings?  
ZOEY: Yeah...  
IAN: Huh?  
ZOEY: It must mean something...  
IAN: What?  
ZOEY: Hmmm...  
IAN: Are you sure you aren't overthinking it?  
ZOEY: No! But like! He's a jock!  
IAN: And?  
ZOEY: He can't have drawings in his locker!  
IAN: Is it like a law?  
ZOEY: It doesn't fit with the whole aesthetic!!  
IAN: That's silly! And keep your voice down...  
ZOEY: Sorry, sorry.  
IAN: Okay look, I also think it's weird that Karter of all people has a bunch of drawings hung up in his locker, but who knows! Everyone has their secrets...  
ZOEY: Yeah...  
ZOEY: I should stop thinking about it.  


But she didn’t. She couldn’t.  
She felt as if her world had been completely shattered (maybe that's a bit of an exaggeration, but you get it).  
  
The rest of the school day felt like a blur, as first days usually felt.  
Zoey switched her brain off, either snoozing or stressing out over the fact that she had brought her sketchbook instead of her much more useful notebook at school. Her head felt empty, static, surreal. It was one of those days where nothing happened and yet you felt every moment of that nothing pass by. Like watching water boil, every moment was infinitely long.  
  
As the day dawned to an end, Zoey’s favourite but soon-to-be least favourite part of the day arrived, library duty.  
Zoey volunteered for library duty every month, it was one of the only places she could be alone; drenched in the silence of the library, the gentle hum of the A/C unit and the rhythmic ticking of the clock hanging above the entrance covering the room with an unseen veil.  
The library wasn’t big, and it didn’t look like the typical high-school movie library, it was mostly a bunch of IKEA-like metallic shelves with tons and tons of books with small codes printed onto the spines of each one.  
  
Zoey took her bag out of the locker and made her way down the hallway, saying goodbye to Ian and heading for the aforementioned library. The soft smell of old, paper and scented markers gave it that soft, domestic-like feeling although the previously mentioned IKEA shelves completely ruined that vibe.  
She sat down at a desk and began sorting books, expecting a nice hour of bliss and total, utter silence.  
  
Until he walked in.  
Like a man-made machine, intruding into the peaceful sanctuary of nature, like a tidal wave crashing onto a small harmless fishing boat, like a single spark igniting a gas-filled room.  
Zoey turned away from her sorting for a moment and glanced over at the door, expecting a teacher or a library staff member or anyone else that wasn’t who she found before her.  
Karter stepped in, his oversized backpack swaying left and right with every step he took, his booming voice roaring through the endless array of books and novels and breaking Zoey's peaceful immersion.

KARTER: HEYA!  
ZOEY: ...  
ZOEY: ...  
ZOEY: ... Hey.  
ZOEY: What, uh, brings you here?  
KARTER: Soo tl;dr I got in a fight.  
ZOEY: Oh.  
ZOEY: Cool.  
ZOEY: So I assume this is-  
KARTER: My punishment, yeah.  
ZOEY: Uh-  
ZOEY: Okay! Cool!  
KARTER: Wait, you're Zoey Berry!  
ZOEY: Uhm! Yeah!  
KARTER: The book girl!  
ZOEY: Ahaha... that's me...  
KARTER: Yoo!!!  
KARTER: Can I ask you something?  
ZOEY: S-sure thing!  
KARTER: Can you help me with my homework?  
ZOEY: Huh?  
KARTER: I have nooo idea how to do some of these things.  
ZOEY: Oh!  
ZOEY: Okay!  
ZOEY: Can you excuse me for a second? I need to go to the bathroom.  
KARTER: Aight!  


Zoey stood up and walked towards the bathroom, turning the closest corner so that Karter couldn’t see her anymore.  
  
What.  
  
The.  
  
Fuck.  
  
She took a moment to process what had just been said, every movement, every breath. She didn’t expect a jock such as Karter to actually do homework let alone ask for help, and yet, here she was. Leaning against the bookshelf, taking deep breaths and counting to ten, occasionally peering through the holes in the bookshelf to make sure this wasn't all just some vivid illusion.  
She fumbled for her phone and messaged Ian, her fingertips gliding over the keyboard.  


\-- [OI] overzealousImpulse began pestering [AT] androgynousTeacakes at 15:32 --  
  
OI: ian  
OI: ian  
OI: ian  
OI: ian  
OI: ian  
OI: IAN  
OI: IAN  
OI: IAN STOP LISTENING TO MUSI CI CAN SEE YOU RSTATUS  
AT: OK OK ZOEY CALM DOWN!!  
AT: whats wrong?  
OI: hes here!!!!  
AT: ?  
AT: who?  
OI: karter!!  
AT: where?!  
OI: In the library!  
AT: hes like in punishment or something!!  
OI: i dunno!! im so confused ghskjghks  
OI: OH  
OI: HE EVEN ASKED ME TO HELP WITH HIS HOMEWORK!!  
AT: ?!?!??!?  
AT: HUH?  
AT: WOW  
AT: whats he doing rn?  
OI: looking down at his phone... probably waiting for me!  
AT: okay! thats cool  
AT: sooo what are you gonna do now?  
OI: i should go  
OI: i cant hide here forever!  
OI: or maybe i can...  
AT: no!!! go!!!  
  
\-- [OI] overzealousImpulse ceased pestering [AT] androgynousTeacakes at 15:34 --  


Zoey set her phone down and peered over at Karter through a crack in the shelf, secretly hoping she would see him doing something outrageous, like burning a book or flipping the table in rage and punching the wall or burning down the whole school or something, anything, that would give her an excuse to just get out of there. She couldn’t stand jocks.  
She couldn’t stand him.  
  
But there he sat, tapping away at his phone, waiting for her to come back.  
Emerging from behind the shelf, Zoey tried her best to avoid eye contact, but the moment Karter noticed her return, he immediately engaged.  
  


KARTER: Welcome back!  
ZOEY: ...  
KARTER: You good man?  
ZOEY: I'm good! I'm good!  
ZOEY: So uh, should we start?  
KARTER: Oh? You're seriously going to help me? No cap?  
ZOEY: Yeah...!  
KARTER: YOO!!  
KARTER: YOU'RE THE BEST!  
ZOEY: Th...thanks.  


Zoey sat down next to Karter as he extracted a bunch of books from his bag, placing them down next to her with a wide grin on his face.  
This was going to be the longest hour of her life.  
The two of them began grinding through Karter’s math homework, well, mostly Zoey. Karter just sat next to her scrolling through his phone and occasionally commenting amd complimenting her.  
  
The hour passed by surprisingly quickly, in fact, she almost forgot she was helping Karter, almost as if she were having fun. The bell chimed a familiar tune, snapping Zoey out of the homework-related trance she had found herself in.

ZOEY: Oh!  
ZOEY: The bell!  
ZOEY: Huh!  
KARTER: Yo! You actually finished all the homework! Fuck yeah!  
ZOEY: No problem...  
KARTER: Hold on, is that the AV room?!  
ZOEY: Uhm, yeah.  
ZOEY: What about it?  
KARTER: Is it open?  
ZOEY: No... I think it's locked.  
KARTER: Damn.  
KARTER: Hold on! Maybe theres a key somewhere.  
ZOEY: I-  
KARTER: The desk!  
ZOEY: Wai-  


Without even listening to Zoey, Karter sprung up and ran to the librarian’s vacant desk, on it was an empty mug, a piece of paper with lots of official-looking information written on it, and a key, tucked under said piece of paper.  
Karter took the key and slid it into the AV room’s lock, it fit like a glove.

KARTER: It works!  
ZOEY: Oh...  
ZOEY: Y-you can't go in there!  
KARTER: Aw c'mon, aren't you curious?  
ZOEY: I guess...  
ZOEY: W-what if we get caught?  
KARTER: We won't I promise!  
ZOEY: Okay...  


Karter pushed the door open and flipped the switch, a dim yellowish light invaded every corner of the dusty room. A long, white table stood in the middle with a bunch of cassette tapes spread all over it, each one marked with a discoloured sticker and black sharpie.  
  
Zoey cautiously entered the room, taking each step slowly as if she were entering an ancient temple, untouched by humans for thousands of years. Karter, on the other hand, barged in, instantly grabbing a bunch of cassettes and inspecting the titles.

KARTER: Hmm... "Shork the Fourth".  
ZOEY: What?  
ZOEY: That sounds like a cheap ripoff.  
KARTER: Eh! It more sounds like an attempt from the author to give the audience a quick laugh... Cheap.  
ZOEY: Huh?  
KARTER: Woah! Look at this! "The body and you instructional video".   
KARTER: Sounds wild.  
ZOEY: Okay I think we should g-  
KARTER: WOAH!  
KARTER: Is that a Rangandonpa cassette?!  
KARTER: Holy shit!!  
ZOEY: Keep your voice down!  
KARTER: This is so fucking cool!!!  


The library door creaked open, a wave of despair and dread washed over Zoey, it was almost paralyzing.  


ZOEY: Shi- We have to go!  
KARTER: Wait wait!  
ZOEY: The teacher's coming!!  
KARTER: I need to see something!  
ZOEY: Karter!!  
KARTER: Wait!  
ZOEY: UGH!!!  


Zoey grabbed Karter’s arm and pulled him out with surprising ease, abandoning the dusty old AV room and slamming the door behind her.  
The teacher turned the corner and looked and Karter and Zoey with a confused glare, before shrugging and reminding them that school was over.  
  
The two of them silently exited the library and walked through the now empty halls of the school, her phone vibrating with notifications, his phone dead silent.

ZOEY: ...  
KARTER: ...  
ZOEY: ...  
KARTER: That was close!  
ZOEY: ...  
ZOEY: ...  
KARTER: Aw c'mon!  
KARTER: Nothing bad happened! See?  
ZOEY: We almost got caught!!!  
KARTER: But we didn't!  
ZOEY: Ugh!!  
KARTER: Oh shit.  
KARTER: Sorry.  
ZOEY: No! No it's okay!  
ZOEY: I'm sorry I made you think you made me mad...  
KARTER: It's all good fam!  
KARTER: For real!  
ZOEY: Okay! Ok.  


They reached the now deserted front gate, all of the other students had already left, a hot summer breeze swept through the street.

ZOEY: Okay...  
ZOEY: Bye!  
KARTER: See ya tomorrow Zoey!  
ZOEY: Yeah...  


Zoey couldn’t concentrate that evening, she couldn’t stop thinking about the AV room, about the old cassettes and about Karter. That last fact particularly wriggling its way into her mind, invading her every thought and invalidating all her attempts of getting her mind back on track. She pulled out her phone and scrolled through her pesterchum contact list, looking for someone able to placate her rampant mind. Ah, yes. They'll do just fine. 

\-- [OI] overzealousImpulse began pestering [BS] burningShenanigains at 16:47 --  
  
OI: hey ashhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!  
BS: hey  
OI: how are you????????????  
BS: ok  
BS: whats on your mind zo  
OI: what do you mean? there's nothing on my mind at all right now!!!!!!!!!!!!!  
BS: your liberal use of exclamation marks begs to differ  
OI: i fail to see your point...............  
BS: periods too apparently  
OI: stop analyzing my messages!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  
BS: then tell me what's wrong  
OI: Ugh!!!!!! fine if you inSIST. . .  
OI: so, i assume you know about karter, right?  
BS: assuming you drone on about the antics he and his entourage get up to i cant say that im not aware of his presence  
OI: mhm mhm okay  
OI: so i was in the library  
OI: mindin my own business, doing usual library things  
OI: until HE bursts in! unannounced!  
BS: why would someone like him go to a place like a library?  
BS: he'd be like a fish out of water in there  
OI: exactly!!!!!!!!!!!  
OI: buuuuut apparently he's getting punished for getting into one of his typical fights, so now I have to deal with him!!!!  
BS: so what did he do in the library thats riled you up to the extent that youre venting in my dms?  
OI: he. broke. into the. AV room!!!!  
OI: we arent allowed in there!!!  
BS: figured.  
OI: but atleast we didnt get caught...  
BS: oh you didnt?  
OI: it was really close though  
BS: then why are you whining if you didnt get caught  
OI: its not that!!! its that...   
BS: that? dont leave hanging here  
OI: i wasnt... upset  
BS: ...  
BS: elaborate  
OI: like!!!!!!!!! after the whole thing!!! i wasnt pissed or anything!!!  
BS: how did you feel??  
OI: i dont know!!!!!!! it was a new weird feeling!!!!!!  
BS: i see.  
OI: what do you see?  
BS: no, nothing, i just understand whats going on between the two of you  
BS: its quite ironic actually if you think about it  
OI: what is?????????  
BS: i cant tell you, it'll ruin the fun  
OI: what??????? what fun??????   
BS: figure it out zo, its real simple  
OI: come on stop being a mysterious bitch for one second ash!!!!!!!11  
BS: no <3  
OI: UGH!!!!!!!!!!!  
  
\-- [OI] overzealousImpulse cased pestering [BS] burningShenanigains at 16:52 --  


She trudged through her homework, taking frequent breaks to watch videos and message her friends, secretly hoping that at least one of them knew a secret solve-all formula to get her out of the mental dilemma she found herself in. But this aimless crusade of hers ended up in smoke. His words still rung in her head: “see ya tomorrow Zoey!”. They followed her everywhere she went, lingering in the back of her head like an itch you can't quite reach.  
  


***

The sun gleamed through the slightly parted curtains, the chirping of birds gently woke Zoey up, preparing her for a new, exciting school day.

Except there were no birds, and it was raining. Nothing about this was exciting.  
She rolled out of bed and rubbed her eyes, grabbing her phone and scrolling through her messages. All of her movements felt slow, sluggish, as if all her limbs were being pulled down by weights towards the ground.  
She arrived at school a mess, her eyes were still half open, her mouth had that horrible morning taste, her hands felt numb. She was still half-convinced she was dreaming.

IAN: Hey Zo!  
ZOEY: Guh... Hey Ian.  
IAN: What's wrong?  
ZOEY: I, don't know.  
IAN: Well I personally think you didn't get enough sleep!  
ZOEY: What gave it away genius?  
ZOEY: Ugh, sorry, sorry I didn't mean that.  
IAN: Hmm.  
IAN: Why weren't you able to go to bed?  
ZOEY: I don't know...  
IAN: Well there HAS to be a reason!  
ZOEY: Well I don't remember this time!!!  
IAN: Does this have to do with Karter?  
ZOEY: What????? Why would you assume that???  
IAN: I was just guessing! The whole thing seemed to really be on your mind, especially after school.  
ZOEY: Well.  
ZOEY: It is NOT about him!! Absolutley not!!!!!!!  
ZOEY: Nope!  
ZOEY: Not about him! At all!  
ZOEY: Nuh-uh!  
ZOEY: What made you possibly think that?!  
ZOEY: This has nothing to do with him!!! Nope!!  
ZOEY: Get that thought out of your head!!!  
ZOEY: Nooope!!  
IAN: ...  
IAN: You're pretty bad at lying Zo.  
ZOEY: Is it that obvious...?  
IAN: Yeah.  
ZOEY: Okay fine. Fine. The whole Karter situation might've stayed on my mind more than I'd wanted to.  
IAN: What did you two exactly do in there?!  
ZOEY: Okay... So... Do NOT tell anyone but...  
IAN: Oh?? Oh my god what did you two do?!  
ZOEY: We...  
IAN: Wait, wait... did you two... y'know.  
ZOEY: W- Hey!! Stop doing that thing with your fingers!!  
ZOEY: L-look! All we did was break into the AV Room!  
ZOEY: Well, HE broke into it, I plead my innocence.  
IAN: Oh. OH!  
IAN: Thank god.  
IAN: I thought you two might've-  
ZOEY: Stop right there.  
IAN: Okay, okay. Sorry.  
IAN: Wait, let me get this straight.  
IAN: You couldn't sleep last night because of Karter?  
ZOEY: Yeah.  
IAN: Could it be...?  
ZOEY: What?  
IAN: Oh hold on do you maybe like, have feelings for him?  
ZOEY: Excuse me?!  
ZOEY: How could you think that?!  
ZOEY: I hate him! He's so annoying! And an idiot! And he smells bad! And he's silly! and stupid! Did I already say stupid?  
IAN: You did.  
ZOEY: Well you get it!  
IAN: Did you tell Ash about this?  
ZOEY: Yeah? What do they have to do with this?  
IAN: How did they react?  
ZOEY: Similarly to you, I guess?  
IAN: Oh I see how it is.  
IAN: Brainwaves.  
ZOEY: Brainwaves?  
ZOEY: Why are you being so cryptic?  
IAN: I think you might be harbouring some feelings for Karter...  
ZOEY: No!!!!  
ZOEY: I just...  
ZOEY: I need to think about it okay!  
IAN: So it's not a no?  
ZOEY: It's. Complicated.  
IAN: Okay, okay.  


They arrived in class and sat down at their respective desks, preparing themselves for the first tedious lesson of the day.  
Zoey slowly tuned out the lecture and found herself scribbling on her notebook, hunched over her desk. Her hand glided across the page, leaving soft and heavy strokes in the smallest corners, she drew little frogs, goats, a funky three-horned creature and one last thing she didn’t expect. Almost as if she were on autopilot, her hand doodled a little drawing of what seemed to be Karter.

She tore her notebook page out and crushed it into a ball, sinking her fingernails into it and shredding it to bits. Her cheeks bright red  
Ian glanced over as they heard Zoey's ruthless execution of the paper ball, a look of concern and curiosity on their face.

IAN: What happened?  
ZOEY: N-nothing!!!!!  
IAN: "Nothing" isn't tearing a paper ball to bits for no reason.  
ZOEY: I just....  
IAN: Are you blushing??  
ZOEY: No!!!  
ZOEY: No I'm not!!!!  
ZOEY: And before you accuse me, I'm definitely not thinking about Karter!  
IAN: I think you are.  
ZOEY: Noo!!!!  
IAN: Okay, suuure.  
ZOEY: AAAAA I HATE THIS!  


The corridors felt empty, a cold breeze blew through the opened windows, grey clouds rolled over the school. Her brain couldn’t stop thinking, the cogs couldn’t stop turning, a slow, monotone clicking sound bouncing around her head all day. Everything seemed blurred as she went from class to class, she replied in monotone “yeah” or "nah”’s every time someone talked to her. That was until last period, library duty.  
She hated how she couldn’t stop thinking about him, his sly smirk, his ridiculous purple hair. 

The library had a familiar aromatic smell lingering in the air, something one would mistake for an unnecessary amount of scented candles when in actuality it was the result of the school Janitor emptying two whole bottles of air freshener. She sat down at her usual table and began sorting books, her hands moving at breakneck speeds as her eyes scanned over each code that had been taped to the book’s spine.

KARTER: Hey Zoey!  


Zoey jumped back and instinctively threw a book at Karter, hitting him square in the face.

ZOEY: OH MY GOD!  
ZOEY: I'M SO SORRY!  
ZOEY: ARE YOU OKAY?!  
KARTER: Oh damn.  
KARTER: You throw hard gurl.  
ZOEY: Are you okay?!  
KARTER: Yeah yeah i'm all good!  


Karter rubbed his nose, leaving a red smear spread across his cheek. He didn’t seem to mind, though.

ZOEY: So uhm, why are you here again?  
KARTER: Still being punished.  
ZOEY: Oh, right.  
ZOEY: What did you get punished *for* exactly?  
KARTER: Oh, I got in a fight.  
ZOEY: A fight?  
ZOEY: Did you, uh, win?  
KARTER: Did I win?  
KARTER: I beat that kid's ass to next Sunday!  


Zoey caught herself letting out a soft giggle. She bit her tongue and dug her fingernails into her leg, hoping Karter hadn't heard it.

ZOEY: W-wow! Must've been something!  
KARTER: Yeah I FUCKED him up!  
ZOEY: Why did you fight him?  
KARTER: He called me a bitch. It's only appropriate that I give him a serving of knuckle sandwich.  
KARTER: Anyway, Zoey, thanks a ton for your help yesterday with my homework it really helped a lot!  
ZOEY: Oh! N-no problem!  
KARTER: Yeah the teacher was all sus at first like "Oh did you copy this from someone else?" but I just denied everything and she believed me!  
KARTER: Got that high-ass grade too.  
ZOEY: Well... Glad I could be of help!  
KARTER: Yeah. Anyway, wanna check out the AV Room again?  
KARTER: We won't get caught I promise!  
ZOEY: Uhm... Sure!  
KARTER: Hell yeah! Let's do this!  


He set his bag down next to hers and grabbed the keys from the librarian’s desk, unlocking the AV room and flipping the switch, the warm light flickered on.  
The dusty cassettes laid on the table just as they had been left the first time the two students ventured into the room.

This time, Zoey took more than one step inside the room, catching a glimpse of the old TV tucked snugly underneath what she could only assume was some sort of blanket-like tarp, it too covered in dust.

KARTER: So why do you think this room is so dusty?  
ZOEY: Uhm, I'm not sure!  
ZOEY: Maybe they don't need cassettes anymore?  
KARTER: Yeah yeah makes sense, you're smart.  
KARTER: Hold on, what if we tried one?  
ZOEY: W-what?  
ZOEY: I don't think that's a good idea!  
KARTER: Aw c'mon! No one will hear us!  
ZOEY: And the janitor?  
KARTER: He doesn't come until the end of the day!  
ZOEY: Okay, alright, lets watch it.  


Karter grabbed a random cassette from the pile and put it into the unsurprisingly dusty VCR player underneath the TV, pressing a button and sitting back as the screen flashed to life, a distant-sounding monotone hum rung in their ears. On the monitor, a faded-out hard-to-read anti-piracy warning appeared for a couple of seconds, before fading to black.  
A jarring sound followed by grainy eighty’s-style menu music emerged from the television.

Zoey grabbed the remote and pressed the mute button as quickly as she could, shooting worried glanced towards the doorway, expecting a furious teacher to walk in and reprimand them both. But nobody came, and she was relieved.

KARTER: See? Nobody!  
ZOEY: Okay...  
KARTER: Anyway how old do you think this stuff is?  
ZOEY: Pretty old...  
KARTER: Like, over 100 years?  
ZOEY: No... That's a bit too far back...  
KARTER: 80?  
ZOEY: Not that either...  
KARTER: 50?  
ZOEY: ...  
KARTER: 40!  
ZOEY: Are you guessing random numbers now?  
KARTER: Well? Is it 40?  
ZOEY: Yeah, it could be.  
KARTER: Woo! First try babey.  
KARTER: Anyway we should watch it!  
ZOEY: S-should we?  
KARTER: Yeah! If you want to, of course.  
ZOEY: Uhm... sure!  


Just as Zoey’s words escaped her mouth, she heard the bell ring, the school day was over.  
Karter looked up at the analogue clock in the AV room and let out a small sigh, slowly getting to his feet and turning the TV off. Zoey, on the other hand, had already jumped out of the room, her glance shooting from the library’s door to Karter.  
He remained calm, slowly stepping out of the room and closing the door just as the teacher stepped foot in the library.

Karter and Zoey gave the teacher a wave and went into the corridor with their bags, a lingering feeling of anxiety and fear still in her heart..

KARTER: Aw man!   
KARTER: I wish we could've seen what was on that cassette...  
ZOEY: Y...yeah.  
ZOEY: Hehe...  
KARTER: Hm? You say something?  
ZOEY: Oh! N-no!  
ZOEY: Just thinking aloud!  
KARTER: Got it.  


They walked in silence until eventually parting ways at the school gate.

\-- [OI] overzealousImpulse began pestering [BS] burningShenanigains at 16:23 --  
  
OI: hey ash!  
BS: hey zoey  
BS: how'd library duty go today?  
OI: OH! it went ok  
BS: was karter there again?  
OI: yeah... he was  
BS: still being punished?  
OI: mhm  
BS: did he get a fight?  
OI: yeah...  
BS: as expected  
OI: "as expected"? you sound like an evil mastermind!  
BS: what if i were?  
OI: that would be silly!  
OI: i cant imagine you being evil  
BS: bahahah suure  
OI: hehe... anyway!  
OI: we went into the AV room again  
BS: i see....  
BS: did you find anything interesting?  
OI: well, karter got a random cassette and played it  
BS: what was on it?  
OI: we werent able to see! :(  
OI: a teacher was coming so we quickly got out  
BS: sucks!  
OI: yeah...  
OI: but maybe ill get to see what it has tomorrow!  
BS: oh? youre looking forward to it now?  
BS: i thought you hated karters guts!  
OI: w!!!!  
OI: NO!!!!  
OI: IM NO T LOOKING FORWARD!!!  
BS: why dont you try to talk to him?  
OI: i already do!  
BS: i mean, outside of library duty  
OI: but hes a jock! i hate jocks!  
BS: do you though?  
OI: yes!!! 100000%  
BS: alright then zo  
BS: whatever you say  
OI >:T  
BS: anyway enjoy your crisis! i have to go now  
OI: awh! see ya ash!  
  
\-- [OI] overzealousImpulse cased pestering [BS] burningShenanigains at 16:52 --  


Zoey sat down at her computer and put her headphones on, opening Musify™ and choosing her “No Thoughts just Vibes” playlist.  
She closed her eyes and let the music transport her into a fantasy world of swords and dragons, where she could explore a vast rainforest, explore ancient, overgrown ruins and lie down by small rivers, letting the sound of the water crashing against the rocks slowly rock her to sleep.

The strained calls of her mother snapped her back into reality, it was dinnertime.

***

A blinding ray of sunlight forced Karter awake, the all-too-familiar sound of the outside commute invading his room.  
He trudged through his typical morning routine, putting on his headphones as he boarded the school bus.

\-- [IH] irritableHermit began pestering [EM] eldritchManicism at 8:50 --  
  
IH: hey  
EM: ah! gm!  
IH: hows it goin?  
EM: its going SPLENDID! how about you?  
IH: swagging, all day, every day  
EM: fuck yeahh  
EM: so you still need to do library duty?  
IH: yeah. sucks.  
IH: buuuuuuut there is one cool ass thing  
EM: tell me more  
IH: theres this old av room with a bunch of old cassettes in it  
IH: we had to like steal a key and stuff to get in  
EM: damnnn thats wild  
EM: also, "we"?  
IH: oooh right right right  
IH: theres this cute girl in the library too  
IH: the one who likes books and plants  
IH: the one with glasses  
EM: zoey?  
IH: yeah, zoey  
IH: do you know anything about her?  
EM: well i know she's called zoey  
EM: pretty sure she's from class 2-C  
EM: and shes friends with ian  
EM: and ash!  
IH: how the hell do u know all of this stuff  
EM: ian likes to talk!  
IH: ooh gotcha  
IH: anyway man i gotta go now  
EM: aight, see ya in a bit!  
IH: see ya   
  
\-- [IH] irritableHermit ceased pestering [EM] eldritchManicism at 8:59 --  


Karter stepped off the bus and made his way to class, where the thick intoxicating smell of HATCHET body spray lingered in the air. He sat down at his desk and let out a long sigh of frustration mixed with sleepiness and a secret third emotion which is probably a mix of the former two.  
He slumped down at his desk and pulled his notebook out, looking at his sharp handwriting and trying to decipher what exactly he had written down.

The class started and ended almost instantly, it felt like a blur to Karter, like a smear, like a shroud of uncertainty wrapped in a bubble of enigma.  
It was only once the lunch time bell rung that he snapped out of his classroom trance.  
As the stereotypical “Jock” in the school, Karter had a strict reputation to keep, he couldn’t go around doing whatever he wanted, it was either hanging around the cafeteria causing problems or in the yard playing all sorts of sports the typical jock would play, nothing else.

Although, after getting caught fighting another student, the teachers have kept their eyes on him more than usual, but he didn’t really care, after all, what's the fun in causing problems if no one sees you?  
During lunch break, Karter caught a glimpse of Zoey, hanging out by a large tree along with her friend.

KARTER: Sup!  
ZOEY: And the- HUH?!  
KARTER: Sup Zoey.  
KARTER: Or should I call you Zo-bro?  
ZOEY: Uhm! Hey Karter!  
IAN: Hey there Karter!  
KARTER: Yo, you're Ian right?  
IAN: The one and only!  
KARTER: Anyway Zo, how's it goin?  
ZOEY: Uhm!  
ZOEY: I'm ok!  
ZOEY: Yeah! I'm good! Very good!  
ZOEY: How about you?  
KARTER: I'm all g Zo-bro.  
IAN: So what brings you to our humble domain?  
KARTER: Oh y'know I just wanted to!  
IAN: Uh huh.  
ZOEY: Don't give me that look!  
IAN: Okay, okay.  
KARTER: Wait hold on have you told your friend here about the AV room?  
ZOEY: Wh-  
IAN: Oh she has!  
IAN: What's in it?  
KARTER: Oh it has like so many cool things! A bunch of old cassettes, and this really cool T-  
ZOEY: Shh!!! Someone might hear you!  
KARTER: And?  
ZOEY: What if a teacher hears you?  
KARTER: Ooh, they dont care, look!  
KARTER: I BROKE INTO THE OLD AV ROOM IN THE LIBRARY!  


Nobody reacted to Karter’s cries, not even the two teachers sitting by the entrance to the main school building, no one at all.

KARTER: See? No one.  
IAN: That was ballsy.  
KARTER: They don't call me Karter King of Balls for no reason!  
ZOEY: No one has ever called you that...  


The three of them continued mingling until the ring of the bell, announcing the end of lunch.  
Karter returned to his locker, where a friend was waiting.

BASIL: Hey there!  
KARTER: Sup man.  
BASIL: I saw you hanging out with Zoey!  
KARTER: Yeah, she's neat.  
BASIL: Are you looking forward to Library duty then?  
KARTER: Psssh, no!  


He was.

KARTER: I'd rather just hang out in class.  
BASIL: Sucks.  
BASIL: What do you two do in there anyway?  
KARTER: Oh we're supposed to organize books and stuff.  
BASIL: So what do you two *really* do in there?  
KARTER: Okay so thereìs this old AV Room in the back where there's a ton of old cassettes.  
BASIL: Oh shit? That sounds really cool!  
KARTER: Yeah, there's a ton of cool ass shit in there.  
BASIL: Mhm, mhm.  
BASIL: So tell me Karter.  
BASIL: Are you into her?  
KARTER: Huh?  
BASIL: Zoey.  
KARTER: Oh? Yeah she's swag.  
BASIL: Is that really all?  
KARTER: Yeah, yeah. I just didn't feel like causing problems today so I went over to chat with her.  
BASIL: Aight.  
BASIL: Anyway I gotta go now.  
BASIL: Catch ya on the flipside.  
KARTER: See ya man.  


As class started, Karter’s mind returned to a fuzzy haze, his hands moved automatically as he haphazardly wrote down notes regarding the lesson in his notebook, it was all rather monotone.  
Until in the corner of his eye, he caught something on his page, a small drawing, a doodle.  
The mere sight of this snapped his brain back into operation, he grabbed an eraser from his desk and vigorously rubbed out the sketches, leaving the page in shambles.

Karter liked to draw, he drew all sorts of things, Rangandonpa characters, little grey troll creatures, random squiggles, everything. But he never showed anyone these drawings, they were private, he kept them locked away in his locker or in the margins of his notebooks, after all, what sort of Jock likes to draw?! Not this one, nope, not at all.

…

Who are we kidding, of course Karter enjoys drawing. He’s been drawing since he started coming to this very school, he loved drawing funny little doodles all over his page.  
But ever since he gained a reputation for himself as “The Jock” through means not even he remembers, he feels as if this type of hobby would get shunned, and he knows that nobody would actually make fun of him but even though, he just… didn’t

The period passed like a breeze as Karter felt his eyelids weigh down on his eyes. Basil shot him a worried glare, but soon realised he was in no state to talk.  
With a visible frown on his face, Karter trudged over to the library, resting his head on the large wooden door for a moment and taking in a deep breath, before bursting in, shouting at the top of his lungs.

KARTER: YOO!  
ZOEY: Wh-?! SHH!  
KARTER: Oh shit, sorry.  
ZOEY: You're here!  
KARTER: Sure am!  
KARTER: Are ya excited?  
ZOEY: For what?  
KARTER: For the AV Room!  
ZOEY: Oh r-right!  
ZOEY: Uhm!  
ZOEY: Should we check it out?  
KARTER: I thought you'd never ask.  


They immediately abandoned their bags on the large table where piles upon piles of unsorted books remained, waiting to be placed in their respective shelves and entered the AV room, flipping the switch on once more to reveal the old, warmly-lit and dusty room.  
The TV was turned off but the cassette they had put in the other day was still in the player, waiting to be viewed

KARTER: Should we see what's on the tape?  
ZOEY: Uhm, sure!  


Karter pushed the tape back in and pressed play on the player, sitting back and watching as the vibrant anti-copyright screen displayed long sentences you would read for the first three words then just forget about it.  
Some obnoxious eighty’s music played for a couple of seconds before the screen fizzled and flickered to a bright blue screen with the words “Unable to read cassette” displayed in a white box.

KARTER: Aw man!  
KARTER: That really sucks.  
ZOEY: Y-yeah!  
ZOEY: But maybe we don't need to watch something!   
ZOEY: We can just read the titles on the cassettes!  
ZOEY: Isn't that fun?  
KARTER: Hmm... let's try another one.  


The jock pulled out the broken cassette and set it down on the table in the middle of the room, grabbing another random one and putting it into the player.  
With a buzz the TV jumped to life, displaying the opening screen for a cheesy summer rom-com starring a bunch of famous actors your parents would always talk about.  
The movie started off as it normally would, with a bunch of old production studios filling the first ten minutes with unnecessary fanfare and logos to remind you that yes, they did indeed work on it! No one else! Just them!  
The movie was cheesy, the acting was horrible, and the plot made no sense whatsoever, but for some odd reason Karter didn’t mind any of that, he didn’t feel forced, he didn’t feel as if he had a pair of eyes piercing through his very soul, through his very being.  
Instead, as he sat there with Zoey, intently watching every scene with her, every moment, he felt at home.

The sound of the bell ringing got both of them to their feet, quickly turning the TV off and slamming the AV door behind them. With incredible speed and mediocre precision, they organised all the books before the Librarian came into the room to tell them to go home.

KARTER: Damn! That movie really was something!  
ZOEY: Y-yeah... It was.  


Karter looked down at his phone and swiped away a bunch of notifications, loudly exhaling through his nose before shooting a quick glance at Zoey.  
At this point, even he knew there was something sparking between them, friendship? Or maybe even, love?  
No, that's silly. Just a couple of days ago she was extremely vocal about her disdain for the whole “Jock” type of person, she always bickered with her friend at her locker. Why would she suddenly develop feelings for him?  
It’s dumb.  
Stop thinking about that. Stop. Stop. Shut up. Fuck y-

ZOEY: Hey uhm!  
KARTER: Yeah?  
ZOEY: Wanna uhm.  
ZOEY: Maybe.  
ZOEY: Like... Go uhm.  
ZOEY: Watch a movie. One day?  
KARTER: ...  
ZOEY: If you can't that's totally fine! I'm not forcing you! Please don't feel forced! Please! If you don't want to that's okay! Sorry I asked! If you want to go play sport with your friends that's okay! You don’t need to hang out with me! It’s okay! Don’t feel pressured! It’s okay! It’s completely fine!  
KARTER: ...  
ZOEY: Okayokayokay!!! S-sorry for bothering you I'll just go home now byeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!!!!  
KARTER: Wait!  
ZOEY: H-huh?!  


A moment of silence fell between them, the distant clamouring of cars and the breeze brushing through the grassy meadows around the entrance was deafening. They stared at each other for a couple of seconds, none of them made a sound.

KARTER: Sure thing!  
ZOEY: O-oh! Okay!  
KARTER: How about tomorrow?  
ZOEY: Oh! Okay!  
ZOEY: Cool! Great!  
KARTER: Alright then Zoey!  
KARTER: I'll see you tomorrow!  
ZOEY: Ok! Bye!  
KARTER: See ya!  
ZOEY: ...  
KARTER: ...   


Karter rushed over to the bus stop and sat down on the bench, grabbing his phone and trying his best to forget about probably the most awkward interaction he’s ever had.  
He didn’t even bother messaging his friends, too much was on his mind, it all felt like mush, it made no sense.

***

Zoey threw her bag down next to her bed and stuffed her face into the pillow letting out otherworldly screams of embarrassment and frustration she didn't even know she was capable of. Did she just ask Karter out?! Was she crazy?! Three days ago she was telling Ian about how much she hated Jocks, him in particular, and now she's supposed to tell them that she just asked him out to the movies?!  
With beating heart and trembling hands, she grabbed her phone.

\-- [OI] overzealousImpulse began pestering [AT] androgynousTeacakes at 17:01 --  
  
OI: IAN!!!  
OI: HIIIIII  
AT: HI ZOEY!!11  
AT: WHATS UP???  
OI: UHM UHM UMM  
OI: SOO you know karter?  
AT: yeah?  
OI: i miiiiiiiightve asked karter out on a date with me to gowatchamovie  
AT: ZOEY1?!?!?!  
OI: YEAH...  
AT: OH MY GOD IM SO HAPPY FOR YOU!!!  
OI: yeah...  
OI: but i still need to choose a movie!!!  
AT: do you know what he likes?  
OI: no????  
OI: how am i supposed to know?!?!  
AT: you asked him out!!!!!  
OI: oh god oh god maybe i should just cancel it!  
OI: maybe ill just tell him tomorrow that the deal is off! yeah!  
AT: NO YOU DUMMY. DONT DO THAT!  
AT: you asked your crush out!! this is really good!  
OI: CRUSH!?!?!  
OI: HE ISNT MY CRUSH!!!  
AT: oh come on its so obvious  
AT: even ash figured it out  
OI: ASH?! YOU TWO HAVE BEEN TALKING BEHIND MY BACK??  
AT: yeah!   
AT: nothing bad though!! dont worry!  
OI: h..how is it obvious that I like him...  
AT: the way you talk about him all the time! the way you seem super happy to always go to library duty! the way your face lights up every time you see him!!  
OI: uh  
OI: uhM  
OI: HEY DID YOU DO TOMORROWS HOMEWORK??  
AT: there is no homework for tomorrow  
OI: uHMmmm  
OI: ok. fine.  
OI: maybe i like him. a bit.  
AT: a bit?  
OI: ...  
AT: a biiiiiiiit?  
OI: FINE I I LIKE HIM ALOT AND HES PRETTY AND I WANNA HANG OUT WITH HIM! OKAY?!  
AT: SEE!!! YOUVE TOTALLY FALLEN FOR HIM  
OI: MHHHHHHH yeah....  
OI: oh i got a genius idea!  
AT: ?  
OI: ill let HIM decide the movie!  
AT: what?! you cant do that!  
OI: YES I CAn!!!  
OI: ok!!  
OI: ihavetogonow BYE!  
AT: ZOEY  
  
\-- [OI] overzealousImpulse ceased pestering [AT] androgynousTeacakes at 17:24 --  


Zoey threw her phone down on her bed and cursed at her ceiling, an intense feeling of fear and dread washing over her. A movie? Really? Was that the most romantic idea of a date she could think of? She sat back up and ran her hands through her hair, trying her best not to think about how Karter would react to her “movie” proposal.  
  
As the hours ticked by, she felt her stomach twist and turn, her mind racing to all sorts of unpleasant conclusions most of which involved Karter simply not showing up or refusing to go to the movies with her. With these thoughts lingering in her mind, gnawing away at her, she sat down at her desk and mindlessly scrolled through her phone, trying her best to distract herself.  
  
The sun dragged a dark ashen veil over the sky as it nestled itself in-between the distant hills.  
Dusk fell, the shadows in Zoey’s room became progressively deeper before amalgamating into an incomprehensible smudge of dark.  
She laid in bed for a while, staring up at her ceiling once again.  
What was she doing? Why was she doing any of this? Did she really think Karter would go out with her? Did she really think he wouldn’t just ignore her? That he would actually have feelings for her? For an average person like herself?  
She ran her hands down her face and squeezed her eyes shut. She didn’t want to cry, she couldn’t cry, who the hell would cry about something like this? She didn’t deserve someone like him, she wasn't interesting in any way, fuck. Fuck.  
With that last thought, Zoey fell asleep.  
  
She woke up with a weight on her chest, her breaths were rapid, her mouth was dry, everything felt oppressive.  
As Zoey trudged through her morning routine, she could barely keep herself on her feet, the number of thoughts crowding her mind were almost nauseating.

\-- [AT] androgynousTeacake began pestering [OI] overzealousImpulse at 8:47 --  
  
AT: zoey! how are you!  
OI: alright  
AT: yeah! are you excited??  
OI: mh i guess...  
AT: are you okay?  
OI: not really! haha  
AT: whats wrong?  
OI: i just have... alot on my mind  
OI: but im ok!  
AT: are you sure zoey?  
OI: yes!  
AT: we can talk more about it at school!  
OI: im fine im fine dont worry about me!  
AT: are you sure?  
OI: yes!!!!  
AT: alright, see you in a bit zo :)  
  
\-- [OI] overzealousImpulse  ceased pestering [AT] androgynousTeacakes  at 8:53 --  


She was not fine. Ian knew this, she knew this, you knew this.  
  
Zoey saw the school gates in the distance and instantly felt her guts churn in a grotesque mix of discomfort, anxiety and fear. Every step felt eternal, like a speck of dust in the backdrop of the universe. The cold feeling of despair rooting itself into her soul.  
  
Karter was nowhere to be seen in the school entrance, not that he usually hung around there but this small detail, or lack thereof, sent Zoey’s mind down another spiral of hopelessness.  
Feeling defeated, she went into class and tried her best not to fall asleep, responding to any questions her classmates or her teacher asked her with a monotone “Yes” or “No”.  
Every time she did anything, she felt thousands of eyes trained on her back, judging every move, every hair on her head, every twitch of her fingers, every thought that crossed her mind.  
  
Lunchtime arrived.

IAN: Hey Zoey!  
ZOEY: Mh... Oh!  
ZOEY: Hey Ian!  
IAN: What's on your mind?  
ZOEY: Nothing! Nothing at all!  
IAN: You seem real pensive...  
IAN: Is this about Karter?  
ZOEY: Wh-  
ZOEY: No it's not!!  
IAN: It is!  
ZOEY: No!!  
IAN: Are you thinking about your date?  
ZOEY: No! It is NOT a date!  


Just as Zoey shouted those words, the jock himself emerged from the corner, walking gleefully over to her, along with a friend of his.

ZOEY: Oh! Hey Karter!  
KARTER: Yoo!  
IAN: Hey Karter!  
BASIL: Hey y'all.  
ZOEY: Oh! You're here too!  
BASIL: Mhm! Where else should I be?  
IAN: Playing sports or something? I dunno.  
BASIL: Oh, I don't play sports, I just follow Karter around.  
KARTER: Nah bro we all know you were one of the star players in the Baseball team back when you were a freshman.  
BASIL: Okay. JUST that though.  
IAN: This school has a baseball team!?  
ZOEY: UHMm!  
ZOEY: How are YOU Karter?!  
KARTER: I'm swaggin!  
KARTER: How about you?  


Zoey noticed Ian nudging Basil, bringing him away to leave her and Karter relatively alone.

ZOEY: Ian wai- Oh! I'm good! I'm having a good day! I'm ok!  
KARTER: Ooh that's real nice!  
KARTER: Anyway Zo-Bro I have a question to ask ya.  
ZOEY: Hm?  
KARTER: Okay so I know you've probably already chosen a movie but there's this other movie I really wanna watch-  
ZOEY: OKAY!  
ZOEY: SURE!  
KARTER: What.  
ZOEY: GREAT IDEA! WE'LL WATCH IT!  
KARTER: I didn't even say what it w-  
ZOEY: GENIUS!  
ZOEY: Oh! I have to go now! Lunch is about to end!  
KARTER: There are like ten minutes left??  


She frantically gave him a wide-eyed grin and a thumbs up before retreating back into the school. Karter stood there dumbfounded, glaring over at Ian and Basil hoping for a response but being greeted with the same expression.  
Lunch ended as she arrived in class, Zoey’s face a vibrant red, Karter’s voice still lingering in her mind, his words echoing.  
She didn’t want to admit it but,  
  
she was in love.  
The final period rolled by, it was time for library duty.  
As Zoey packed her bag, Ian shot her a sly smile and a wink.  
She arrived at the library particularly early, eager to get the books sorted so she wouldn’t have to rush them all last minute.  
Karter didn’t arrive on time, but she didn’t worry. After all, he did seem like the type of person to arrive late.  
But fifteen minutes later, Karter still hadn’t arrived. A worrysome feeling washed over her. She couldn’t stop her mind from wandering to all the worst possible scenarios. Was he okay? Did something happen? Did he get in a fight?  
  
Zoey dashed outside of the library and strained her neck to look from side to side, hoping to spot him. But the corridors were empty, she couldn’t even hear his voice in the distance. Radio silence.  
She retreated back into the library, sitting down by the empty table and digging her hands into her hair.  
The hour scraped by, Zoey sat down by the desk and brought her knees to her chest. Usually, when she was alone, she would read a bunch of books she found interesting before putting them away. This time, though, she didn’t feel like it.  
She grabbed her phone.

\-- [OI] overzealousImpulse began pestering [AT] androgynousTeacakes at 15:43 --  
  
OI: hey ian  
AT: hey zo!!  
AT: hows library goinnn?  
OI: karter isnt here... !  
AT: what do you mean?  
OI: he didnt show up...  
AT: why not?!  
OI: i dunno!!  
OI: could you uhm, ask around?  
AT: ill ask his friend!  
AT: i got their chumhandle after all...  
OI: well?  
OI: ian??  
OI: what did he say????  
AT: ooh shit  
AT: karter got in a fight  
OI: oh my god is he okay?!  
AT: yeah he is  
AT: buut he got suspended  
AT: effective immediately  
OI: oh?!  
OI: for how long?  
AT: till the end of the week...  
AT: he wont be able to come to library duty anymore...  


Ian’s words pierced Zoey’s heart. Library duty was the only time she had with Karter, alone, and she was far too shy to just go over to him out of nowhere and talk to him.  
For the remainder of the period she thought about how she could talk to him more. She didn’t want to just message him out of nowhere, that would seem intrusive, plus she didn't even have his chumhandle! She didn’t want to drive him away either, she couldn’t bear the thought of it, finally feeling something, finally feeling a little less alone.  
  
The period finally ended as Zoey finished scrolling through her phone, not even raising her head to greet the librarian that had just entered the room.  
She came across Ian as she walked towards the gate, her face low, a shroud of sadness surrounding her head.

IAN: You alright Zo?  
ZOEY: Yeah, I am.  
IAN: You don't LOOK okay...  
ZOEY: Hmm...  
IAN: Is this about Karter?  
ZOEY: What makes you think that?  
IAN: You're like, super sad!!  
ZOEY: What?! No I'm not!  


Zoey forced a smile.

IAN: Look! You get to see him later today, right? Cheer up!  
ZOEY: What if he's hurt?? What if he can't come??  
IAN: I'm sure he can! He's a tough guy!  
ZOEY: I guess you're right...  
IAN: Yeah! Cheer up Zoey!  
ZOEY: Mh!  


Feeling happier after Ian's improvised pep-talk, she returned home, throwing her bag down on the floor and limply falling onto her bed like a ragdoll. She was barely able to concentrate on her homework, her mind wandering off every time she tried to focus.

Her phone buzzed, an alarm went off, it was time.  
She grabbed her coat and put on her favourite pair of cyan blue shoes, grabbing an apple before running out. Her mind jumping all over the place on the bus ride to the movies, she couldn’t stop thinking about him, about all of the short but precious moments she had spent with him, about his voice, about the way he moved, each sinuous movement of his imprinted in her mind.

Before she even realized, the bus stopped in front of the movie theatre. She promptly stepped out, the freezing cold afternoon air hitting her like a truck.  
Zoey scanned the area, instantly making Karter out among the crowd.

KARTER: Zoey!  
ZOEY: K-Karter! Are you okay?!  
KARTER: Oh? Yeah totally!  
ZOEY: Okay, I'm glad.  
ZOEY: I'm really glad...  
KARTER: Did ya hear about my fight?  
ZOEY: Yeah...  
KARTER: Yeahhh it sucks I got suspended.  
ZOEY: A-anyway! What movie did you pick?!  
KARTER: Right! Do you know what Rangandonpa is?  
ZOEY: That series about a bunch of bears in a killing game??  
KARTER: Yeah, yeah. Did you know they made a movie about it?  
ZOEY: They what.  
KARTER: Oh yeah its gonna suck ASS but that's the best part!  


Zoey was completely repulsed by the idea of watching a Ranganronpa movie. Sure, she was a fan of series, she had played all of the games so far and had also cosplayed as one of her favourite students, Bearichi Saihara, but as far as she knew, all movie adaptations are bound to fail. And yet, with Karter by her side, she didn’t automatically turn around and walk in the other direction, trying to get as far away as possible from the sick display of capitalism that was a video game movie. 

They walked into the movie theatre and bought a large bucket of popcorn, which Karter ended up eating the majority of. Zoey barely remembered what the movie was about. In part because it was so horribly made that even a middle schooler with a flip phone could have better production value but also because her eyes couldn't help but drift over to Karter.  
He had a huge smile plastered across his face, his eyes lit up by the large screen, his purple hair glowing under the flashing colors.

***

As the movie came to an end, the soft lights in the hall turned on. Zoey’s eyes strained for a moment as they adapted back to the warm glow around her.  
She rubbed her eyes and stood up, watching as the rest of the crowd followed suit like clockwork.  
She and Karter slipped through and emerged outside the viewing hall, a long line of various other people snaking and twisting through the cinema’s large antechamber.  
Suddenly, Karter grabbed Zoey’s hand and pulled her through, finally leaving the theatre and walking out onto the street, the moon now slowly rising as the sun left the sky for yet another night.

ZOEY: So where to now?  
KARTER: Hmm I'm not sure.  
KARTER: Definitely not in back in there, that movie was, as expected, horrible!  
ZOEY: Hehehe, yeah, you're right.  
ZOEY: How about we go see something else?  
KARTER: Like?  
ZOEY: Maybe a park?  
KARTER: Oh! I know one!  


Karter lead the way, while Zoey trailed closely behind, her mind racing. What was going to happen now? Where was Karter going to bring her?  
He stopped at a large metal gate, stepping onto the stone pathway and turning his head, lending his hand to Zoey.  
With a flustered giggle, she put her palm on his, a warm feeling shook down her body, a soft smile spread cheek to cheek.

KARTER: This park is super cool, I always came here when I was a kid.  
ZOEY: That's so cool!  
KARTER: Hold up hold up watch this-   


He let go of her hand for a moment and ran over to a massive oak tree, its branches were spread out like a spiderweb, intertwining and wrapping around each other, all inches from the ground.  
With a huff, he climbed up onto it, standing triumphantly on the thick branch as a breeze picked up, brushing through his hair.  
Zoey couldn’t help but stare, she found herself lost in his personality, everything he did felt so soothing, she wanted to be like him, carefree as a bird, enjoying life to the fullest.  
She ran over to him and clambered up the tree, scuffing her knee and covering her clothes in dirt and grime.

KARTER: Have you never climbed up a tree before?  
ZOEY: What?! Of course I have!  
KARTER: You seem pretty bad at it!  
ZOEY: S-shut up! I'll have you know when I was a kid I was the tree-climbing champion!  
KARTER: Riiiight and I'm a world famous artist.  
ZOEY: You are though! I've seen your drawings they're so pretty!  
KARTER: What.  


She held her breath, covering her mouth with her hands as her eyes widened in fear.

KARTER: You looked in my locker?  
ZOEY: I uh- I didn't mean to! I swear!  
ZOEY: It was slightly open so when I went to get something in my locker I kind of saw something and I got a bit curious and I tried to forget about it but then I told Ian an-  
KARTER: You told Ian?   
ZOEY: Oh my god I'm so sorry!  
ZOEY: I really am please!  
ZOEY: Oh I've ruined this night I'm a horrible person I'm sorry.  
KARTER: ...  
ZOEY: I'll leave now! We can never see each other again if you want I'll just mess stuff up.  
KARTER: What?! Don't leave you dumbass!  
ZOEY: I just shouldn't have looked I’m so dumb I’m sorry you’re allowed to be mad at me it’s okay if you want to leave just please don’t get mad at me I’m so sorry I shouldn’t have looked I’m so so sorry I’ll forget all about it I’m so sorry I didn’t mean to I didn’t want to I’m such a terrible person I-  
KARTER: Oh my god.  
ZOEY: Wh-  


Karter grabbed Zoey by her collar and pulled her towards him, pressing his lips against hers.  
That one singular second of bliss felt like an eternity, Zoey felt her cheeks get warm, she felt all her fears melt away, she felt as if she were freefalling, the wind brushing through her twin pigtails, nothing keeping her down.  
  
She fell back onto the tree stump, her lips still parted, her chest rising and falling rapidly as she could hear her heartbeat thumping in her ears. The world was spinning yet Karter remained absolutely still, he was sitting in front of her, the look on his face indescribable.  
  
They stayed silent for a moment, letting the fresh sensation of the kiss linger on their lips.

KARTER: W-woah.  
ZOEY: Uhm  
KARTER: Huh.  
ZOEY: Wow.  
KARTER: That was. Something.  
ZOEY: Sure was.  


Zoey looked down at her lap, occasionally glancing over at Karter to study his face and try to figure out how exactly he felt about the last ten seconds.  
He eventually looked Zoey in the face, giving her a warm, sincere smile.

KARTER: Wanna do it again?  
ZOEY: S-sure!  


The two of them spent the next hour kissing on top of the oak tree, sharing awkward glances, holding hands, telling each other secrets they would tell nobody else.  
As the sun finally set, Zoey’s mother called.

ZOEY: Oh- I have to go home.  
KARTER: Right! So do I!  
ZOEY: Hehe okay!  
KARTER: Oh Zoey! I never got your chumhandle!  
ZOEY: Oh! It's overzealousImpulse!  
ZOEY: W-what about yours?  
KARTER: irritableHermit.  
ZOEY: Cool!!  
KARTER: Alright, see ya later Zo!  
ZOEY: Ok!!!!!  


Karter gave Zoey a warm hug before jumping off the tree and disappearing through the large iron gate, onto the street, and behind a corner.  
Zoey got on the bus and made her way home.

\-- [OI] overzealousImpulse began pestering [AT] androgynousTeacakes at 19:12 --  
  
OI: hey ian!  
AT: oh! hey zo!  
AT: wait  
AT: WAIT DID YOU HAVE YOUR DATE WITH KARTER?!  
OI: yeah...  
AT: HOW DID IT GO  
AT: TELL ME EVERYTHING!!!  
OI: well, we kinda  
AT: KINDA?!!  
OI: kissed  
AT: OH MY GOOOD!!!!!1  
OI: yeah!!  
AT: HOLY SHIT HOLY SHIIIIIIT  
AT: YOU TWO KISSED OHH I KNEW I KNEW I KNEW THERE WAS SOMETHING BETWEEN THE TWO OF YOU  
OI: hehehe yeah! it really was something!  
AT: OH I BET!!!!  
AT: OH YOU HAVE TO TELL ME ALL ABOUT IT TOMORROW  
OI: i will!!  
AT: OKAY I HAVE TO GO NOW BYE ZO IM SO HAPPY FOR YOU!!  
OI: bye!!!!  
  
\-- [OI] overzealousImpulse  ceased pestering [AT] androgynousTeacakes  at 19:21 --  


***

The soft yellow glow of her bedroom light lit up her face, reflecting off her glasses. Her head sunk into the soft pillow, the gears in her mind twisting and turning as she still processed what had happened back at the park. She could still feel his hand pulling her collar and his warm lips pressing against hers, every time she thought about it her head spun. 

As the night went on, Zoey’s mind couldn’t help but imagine Karter. All she could think about was his face, his sly smirk and his nonchalant attitude, all irresistible to her.  
Ian returned after a while to barrage her with questions ranging from what movie they watched to every intricate detail of what happened in the park.  
After dinner she immediately went to bed, looking forward to Friday when she would finally be able to talk to Karter in person.

But the realisation hit her only when she woke up the following morning, Karter was suspended.  
The bus ride to school was much less exciting than she had expected. Even though she knew Ian was waiting for her to tell them everything about what happened, she still felt slightly disconcerted by Karter’s absence.  
The moment Ian’s eyes met hers, they were already approaching her at frightening speeds

IAN: ZOEY!  
IAN: ZOEY!  
IAN: ZOEY!  
ZOEY: Hey Ian!  
IAN: HEY!  
ZOEY: Hey Ian!! Calm down!  
IAN: Okay! Okay.  
IAN: Sooo how was it?  
ZOEY: I already told you! It was nice!  
IAN: I bet!  
IAN: Did you get his chumhandle?  
ZOEY: Oh! Right! I did!  
IAN: Ooh did you two stay up all night texting?  
ZOEY: Uhm!! Not really! I was too shy...  
IAN: Aw c'mon Zo!  
ZOEY: I know! I know! Maybe I'll do it later!  
IAN: I know you Zoey, you won't do it until someone forces you to!  
ZOEY: Ugh! Okaay! I'll do it now!  
IAN: Great!  


Reluctantly, Zoey pulled her phone out and began typing in Karter’s chumhandle, all while Ian peered over her shoulder, watching intently.  
She opened a chat room, and Karter immediately came online.

IAN: OH! HE'S ONLINE ALREADY!  
ZOEY: YEAH!?  
ZOEY: WHAT DO I TYPE??  
IAN: SAY SOMETHING LIKE "HEY" I DUNNO  


Zoey typed a greeting out and stared at her phone for a couple of seconds, trying to work up the courage to press send.

IAN: Well?  
ZOEY: Hold on!  
ZOEY: I'm getting ready...  
IAN: Ready? To what?  
ZOEY: To send the text!  
IAN: Oh my god!!  


Ian lunged forward and pressed send, sending Zoey into a wide-eyed panic.

ZOEY: WH- WHY!?  
IAN: YOU WEREN'T GONNA DO IT ANYWAY!  
ZOEY: I MEAN...  
IAN: I'M RIGHT.  
ZOEY: YEAH...  


Karter immediately replied.

\-- [OI] overzealousImpulse began pestering [IH] irritableHermit at 9:03 --  
  
OI: Hey!  
IH: supp zo!   


Ian and Zoey blankly stared at each other, both of them still riding the wave of adrenaline and trying to figure out what to say next.

IAN: That was quick...  
ZOEY: It sure was...  
ZOEY: So uhm what should I say now?  
IAN: How am I supposed to know?!  
ZOEY: You're like, the expert, right?  
IAN: What?! Why??  
ZOEY: I thought you had experience with this stuff!!  
IAN: Why would you think that??  
ZOEY: You're always so cool and collected!  
IAN: Zoey you don't even know that in my head there is this funny little man who just pushes random buttons! I have no idea what I’m doing!  


But Zoey didn’t respond, her eyes were too concentrated on her phone, watching anxiously as Karter typed out another message.

\-- [OI] overzealousImpulse began pestering [IH] irritableHermit at 9:03 --  
  
OI: Hey!  
IH: supp zo!  
IH: how you feelin?  
OI: im good!  
IH: hell yeah  
IH: hey turn around  


Zoey looked around, her eyes finally meeting Karter's as he stood outside the school gates.

KARTER: Hey Zoey!!!  


Without a second thought, she darted towards him, a huge smile plastered across her face.

ZOEY: Karter!! Hey!!!  
KARTER: Heeey hahah!  
ZOEY: Man! I wish you weren't suspended...  
KARTER: Hahah what can I say? They couldn't handle the Karter style.  
ZOEY: Hehe! You could say that!  
KARTER: Hey how about we hang out after school?  
ZOEY: Sure thing!!!!  


Karter gave Zoey a small smirk before disappearing behind the corner, leaving her standing by the gate, Ian rushing to grab her.  
The rest of the school day seem to pass by like a flash. Until the last bell finally rung.  
She darted up from her desk, waving goodbye to Ian and reaching her locker to pull out her bag.  
  
And right there, at the front gate, Karter was waiting, leaning against the stone pillar, shooting her a sly smirk.  
She ran to him, awkwardly intertwining her fingers with his as she glanced up at his eyes before shyly looking away.

KARTER: Woaah ahah that was direct!  
ZOEY: Hehe... yeah.  
KARTER: So, where do you wanna go Zo?  
ZOEY: Hmm...  
  
...anywhere you want to!  



End file.
